Olympic-Conjugate Strength Training Hybrid

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Olympic-Conjugate Strength Training Hybrid

• Jason Riddell MS, SCCC,CSCS, USAW
• Head Strength Conditioning Coach
• American University

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Who knows what their training philosophy is?

• What are the top 5 compound lifts that you feel
  carry over best to the sport you are training
  for?
• Make a simple tree diagram listing the Big 5
  exercises and then list 3 exercises that will
  strengthen each of the Big 5.
• Repeat as necessary.

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Big 5 Football-example 1
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Big 5 Football-example 2
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Olympic/Westside Hybrid

• Westside is not bands and chains, or box
  squats, board presses or whatever lift you might
  attribute to being a traditional Westside
  exercise. And when you hear someone say, oh I am
  a Westside guy or I am a bands and chains guy,
  you can go ahead and conclude that they dont get
  it.

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Westside Barbell

• Westside is more of a state of mind and an
  attitude of I will persevere no matter what.
  Louie Simmons and the lifters of Westside Barbell
  employ the use of the conjugate method and the
  bands/chains or what ever else you want to throw
  in there are merely tools that they utilize to
  elicit increases in maximal strength.

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Thomas Edison Story

• Edison was a guest of the governor of North
  Carolina when the politician complimented him on
  his creative genius.
• I am not a great inventor, countered Edison.
• Im afraid I dont understand what you mean,
  the governor remarked.

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Thomas Edison Story

• Well, explained Edison, I guess Im an awfully
  good sponge. I absorb ideas from every course I
  can, and put them to practical use. Then I
  improve them until they become of some value. The
  ideas which I use are mostly the ideas of other
  people who dont develop them themselves.

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My Personal Opinion

• In addition to that, anyone who classifies
  themselves as a singular method coach isnt worth
  a damn in my opinion! Narrow-mindedness and
  ignorance lead to ineffectiveness when it comes
  to coaching. You must assimilate as many tools as
  you can into your coaching tool box so you are
  prepared to deal with as many athletes as
  possible.

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Remember

• No one athlete is the same. They all have their
  strengths and weaknesses and you as their coach
  must be able to address those issues effectively
  to make them a better athlete and the only way to
  do that is to be diversified in your skill set.

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2 main systems of organizing long term training

• (Concurrent system) involves the parallel
  training of several motor abilities, such as
  strength, speed and endurance, over the same
  period, with the intention of producing
  multi-faceted development of physical fitness.
  (Siff, 290)
• (Conjugate sequence system or Simultaneous
  training) involves successively introducing
  into the training program separate, specific
  means, each of which has a progressively stronger
  training effect, and coupling them sequentially
  to create favorable conditions for eliciting the
  cumulative effect of all training loads.
  (Zatsiorsky, 127 Siff, 290)

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Concurrent system

• Traditional western periodization works well with
  beginner and medium level athletes but only
  produces average results with elite athletes.
• 3 main methods of changing load
• Linear
• Step/Stair
• Wave
• Periodization- a division of the training season
  into smaller and more manageable intervals
  (periods of training, mesocycles, and
  microcycles) with the ultimate goal of reaching
  the best performance results during the primary
  competition(s) of the season. (Zatsiorsky, 228)

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Conjugate sequence system or Simultaneous training

• Conjugate sequence use of unidirectional means,
  integrated by separately developing individual,
  specific motor abilities (e.g. strength, speed
  and strength-endurance), can be an invaluable
  method of organizing special strength training
  for more advanced athletes. (Siff, 290)
• e.g. 4 days 1) Maximal Lower Body Strength, 2)
  Maximal Upper Body strength, 3) Dynamic/Explosive
  Lower Body Strength, 4) Dynamic/Explosive Upper
  Body Strength.
• The conjugate sequence does not reject the
  complex (concurrent) method as the most general
  principle of training, but only extends it so
  that it meets the requirements of conditioning
  highly qualified athletes. (Siff, 371)

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Organization of Training Pyramid
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1st Physical Fitness

• Are your athletes in shape enough to train? Or
  are you getting them in shape to train?
• Cardiovascular
• -Beep Test/ Progressive Shuttle Run Test
  (http//www.topendsports.com/testing/tests/20mshut
  tle.htm)
• -MINIMUMS Level 10 for women equates to a VO2max
  of approximately 47 ml/kg/min.
• -Level 11, Shuttle 6 for men equates to a VO2max
  approximately 52 ml/kg/min.
• (VO2max- Maximal oxygen uptake measured during
  exercise, the maximal amount of oxygen consumed
  reflects the bodys ability to utilize oxygen as
  an energy source)
• The future is utilizing Heart Rate Monitoring
  Technology that is presented by Rob Taylor, Head
  Strength Conditioning Coach at Loyola College
  in Baltimore, MD.
• Strength
• Push-ups Test
• MINIMUMS 34 for men and 26 for women age 20-29.
  These numbers put them in the 80th percentile
  according to the ACSM guidelines. (ACSM 6th ed,
  85)

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2nd Technique

• Are you proud of your technique? When your
  athletes train in other facilities they reflect
  you, so if they look bad then you look bad!!
• - Bodyweight Squat
• Must be able to sit to parallel, heels down, back
  flat (no kyphosis!)
• Must initiate the descent with hip/butt not the
  knee.
• Must initiate the ascent with the chest/head and
  not the hip/butt.
• Olympic movement (Clean/Snatch and Jerk)
• Empty bar- Start/Power position Feet hip width,
  knees slightly bent, low back arched, hang above
  knee, elbows out/arms straight, shoulder blades
  retracted, head up. Must initiate the movement
  with hip extension not arms!
• No reverse curls!
• No catching with a jumping jack stance or on the
  toes!
• Elbows and hands must be in proper rack position
  when catching.

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Remember

• It should be clearly evident that good technique
  leads to strength gains and injury reductions.
• If you want to use Olympic lifts and dont know
  how to teach them then I implore you to go learn
  from someone who knows how to teach them. Hint,
  take a USAW course or find someone who has and is
  certified to teach the lifts.

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3rd Repetition Method

• Multi-joint, ground based exercises using
  sub-maximal weights are used to increase lean
  muscle mass (e.g. squat and deadlift). This is
  where bodybuilding and HIT (High Intensity
  Training) techniques are utilized.
• Yes, I said HIT and even though I am not a
  proponent it can be used to elicit significant
  hypertrophy.
• Utilizing hypertrophy based training to increase
  muscular cross sectional area, increase lean mass
  and elevate bodyweight allows for more advanced
  training methods in the future.
• The other benefit is that your players will be
  better suited physically to tolerate the impact
  forces encountered during the game no matter what
  position or sport they play.
• There is no point in performing high impact
  plyometrics, maximal effort or dynamic effort
  techniques without an adequate strength base or
  you are setting up an athlete for failure or even
  worse, injury.

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4th Maximal Effort Method

• By the time your athletes are ready for using
  maximal weights their technique should be
  excellent and their bodies should be thick and
  strong from all of the previous work.
• Dave Tate Test determine if your athlete is
  ready for lifting maximal weight.
• As an athlete sets up for a squat with max
  weight, you push them and see if they move.
• I am not talking about trying to knock them down
  but when you push them they shouldnt move.
• They should be solid and rigid with abs flexed
  and their lats engaged by pulling the bar tight
  to their traps.
• If they move, stumble or they are wobbling you
  should probably back off the weight.

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4th Maximal Effort Method (cont.)

• I have found that use of maximal weights (above
  90) is best kept in the off-season training
  periods for my athletes. Highly advanced
  athletes are better suited to above 90 in season
  but those individuals are rare. You cannot
  use above 90 for more than 3 weeks at a time in
  the same exercise due to CNS fatigue.
• In season lifting utilizes heavy weight to
  maintain strength levels but instead of singles,
  doubles and triples used for max effort training,
  4s, 5s and 6s are used.
• Max effort exercises that work well with athletes
  and have a safety factor built in are pin pulls
  and pin presses.
• 3 Benefits of using the pins.
• Starting strength due to lack of momentum.
• You cant cheat them.
• If you miss you just dump the weight into the
  rack.

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4th Maximal Effort Method (cont.)

• Others I like to utilize that require greater
  attention to detail.
• Elite Fitness Systems- Exercise Index DVDs
• Squat and Deadlift Bench Press
• Free Squat/Pin Squat
• Deadlift- Clean grip Snatch grip
• Elevated Deadlift
• Board Presses
• Floor Presses
• Reverse Band Work.
• Back Front Box Squat

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Remember

• A hurt athlete cant play and definitely cant
  train so choose your exercises wisely. A good
  coach can always find an alternative that will
  still produce results.

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5th Dynamic Effort Method

• This is probably the most applicable method when
  it comes to enhancing athletic performance. The
  goal is to improve the rate of force development
  and explosive strength. Unfortunately, it can
  take years before athletes are ready physically,
  mentally and neuromuscularly to perform exercises
  in this fashion.
• Olympic Lifts
• Power output is maximized with approximately
  40-70 of 1RM.
• The goal with the O-lifts is technique but when
  that is achieved it is bar speed!!!
• Dynamic Squat
• Typically 8-12 sets of 2 repetitions at 50-65 of
  1RM.
• Beginner 12 sets with higher . Advanced 8
  sets with lower .
• Dynamic Bench
• Typically 9sets of 3 repetitions at 40-60
  depending on your training history.
• Rotating grips every set from narrow, regular and
  wide to fully stimulate triceps, chest, forearms
  and shoulders. Each grip gets hit 3 times.

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6th Weak Points

• This is the pinnacle of the triangle and although
  it comprises the smallest portion, I feel that
  its location shows how important it really is. It
  is viewed in different ways depending on the
  sport.
• In the sport of powerlifting weak points are
  having trouble with lock out strength, coming out
  of the hole, getting your gear dialed in or what
  ever the individual needs to fix in order to
  increase their total.
• I think of it a little differently when to comes
  to field, court, track and pool sport athletes.
  With these athletes weak points must be addressed
  throughout the entire training pyramid to allow
  for optimal performance on the daily not just
  every few months at a meet.

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6th Weak Points (cont.)

• For example, most basketball players that I have
  encountered initially have horrible flexibility
  especially in the hip area.
• That is a weak point and here is why.
• The obvious answer is it will limit their ability
  to squat properly but that translates to on court
  performance.
• If they do not have the ability to sit in a low
  defensive position it adversely affects their
  play. The athlete will be unable to lower their
  center of gravity properly therefore inhibiting
  their ability to post up, box out and change
  direction efficiently.
• These skills must be performed efficiently by an
  athlete due to them being critical for success in
  the game of basketball.
• The key to identifying these problems is to
  recognize them early so the athlete doesnt
  exacerbate the problem where it can turn into
  muscle imbalances, incorrect motor patterns and
  eventually injury.

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Putting It All Together

• See Excel spreadsheet
• References
• 1) American College of Sports Medicine, ACSMs
  Guidelines For Exercise Testing And Prescription
  6th Edition. Lippincott Williams Wilkins,
  Philadelphia, PA. 2000.
• 2) Elite Fitness Systems. www.elitefts.com
• 3) Maxwell, J.C., Talent Is Never Enough. Thomas
  Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN. 2007.
• 4) Siff, M.C., Supertraining 6th Edition.
  Supertraining Institute, Denver, CO. 2003.
• 5) Top End Sports. www.topendsports.com
• 6) Zatsiorsky, V.M., Science and Practice of
  Strength Training. Human Kinetics, Champaign, IL.
  1995.